UK Not so Golden Radical Islamist Oldies - Where are they now ?

Muslim News from 1996 shows that British dhimmis became the welcome mat for radical Islamists
January 19, 2005

MIM: It worth to noting that the deadly game which radical Islamists have been playing with the British government has been on going since the 1990's and escalated from chants of bias to Bin Laden with no vital change in UK policy.In fact last year an Islamonline poll revealed that Muslims found Britain one of the best places for Muslims to live !

These 1996 news items from the Muslim News could have been written today . In several items terrorists who are accused of incitement hold press conferences in which they blame Zionists for attempting to prosecute them.

The absurdity of the situation, which shows why London became a 'Mecca' for terrorists is best summed up by the Judge who is quoted remarking about the failure to prosecute Muhammed Ma'asri a Saudi who advocates overthrowing the ruling family in the kingdom and establishing a Taliban style Islamist state.

"I express no surprise" It seems that this man can say anything without risk of persecution or expulsion from this country".

MIM: On a social level, the SUN newspaper reported that UK Muslims were offended by the 'uniquely British' slogan "Pigs Might Fly which was included on a scratchcard game .

The Sun (26.07.96) claims that Muslims are angry about a lottery scratchcard called Pigs Might Fly, since eating pork is forbidden in Islam.[Many Muslims would also argue that playing the lottery is also forbidden. See BMMS for January and February 1996]. A spokesperson for Camelot, the promoters of the scratchcard, commented: "The card is supposed to be funny. The phrase ‘Pigs might fly' is uniquely British. We would be amazed if many people were offended." [BMMS July 1996 Vol. IV, No. 7, p. 7]

MIM :Indeed, the sun which has set on the British empire has been replaced by the Crescent moon of Islam.

In 1994 The Muslims had already set up their own parliament in anticipation of reaching their goals of turning the UK in the United Kalifate. They "debated Europe's cultural crusade against Islam" and 10 years later London was renamed 'Londinistan'.

A Railtrack Security expert is said to be using the company's computer to recruit Islamic fighters. Mohammed Sohail, 42, is a member of the Global Jihad Fund which aims to supply fundamentalist groups around the world with money "to purchase weapons and train their individuals." Mr Sohail has been using his Railtrack e-mail address to help enlist recruits for ‘holy wars' in Kashmir, Pakistan, Kosovo and Chechnya. Mr Sohail said: "It is true that I am connected with the GJF. I work as a volunteer helping with things such as fund-raising and recruitment for organisations involved in jihad. I want to make it clear that our organisation has never targeted people in Britain. We are involved only with struggles abroad." Asked about his Railtrack e-mail address, he said: "It is only like someone else making a personal phone call from their office." Railtrack have promised an investigation into the allegations (London Metro, 25.10.99). [BMMS October 1999 Vol. VII, No. 10, p. 6/7]

The Muslim Parliament held its ninth session in the Logan Hall, University of London, on 27th November (see British Muslims Monthly Survey for October 1994). The turn-out was disappointing and proceedings were reported only in the Muslim press (Q News & Daily Jang 02.12.94). The only motion for debate which attracted wider coverage was that which focused on sex education in state schools which was held to be "laden with values totally contradictory to those of Islam and indeed other religions" (Lancashire Evening Telegraph 25.11.94). The burden of objections to most school sex education was that it is conducted outside a moral framework which gives clear guidance as to the centrality of sex within marriage and the inadmissibility of homosexuality as a valid alternative lifestyle. A motion was unanimously passed which "recommended that all Muslim parents withdraw their children from sex education classes, as is their right under the law" (Q News 02.12.94).

The issue of the provision of genuinely halal meat was again debated. It was noted that there is still mixing of halal and haram [forbidden] meat and that interested parties are bringing pressure to bear to restrict the influence of the Halal Food Authority. It was noted that there are now 20 approved HFA outlets for halal meat which are concentrated in London and Leicester.

An emergency debate focused on the plight of British Muslim Ahmed Omar Sheikh who is currently detained in India on charges relating to the kidnap of tourists in an effort to draw attention to the struggle for independence in Kashmir (see BMMS for October and November 1994). The parliament resolved to support Sheikh's family and call on India to ensure that he is treated in accordance with the Convention on Human Rights.

The debate on "Europe's cultural crusade against Islam" was introduced by a speech from Dr Yaqub Zaki who held that there had been a sinister renaissance of the confrontation between Islam and the West. He cited various literary attempts to "ridicule Islam and bring it into disrepute" (Daily Jang 02.12.94). "Pointing out the role of creative media in launching this cultural crusade, he said it is a "cultural crusade under the guise of education". He called for measures to be taken to "neutralise the evil" that subtly works in the veil of literature and art, and a true interpretation of the much misinterpreted, Muslim perspective on the arts". [BMMS November 1994 Vol. II, No. 11, p. 1]

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MIM: In 2004 Yusuf Islam was in the news for having been refused entry to the United States for security reasons. Here the newly media shy and piously humble "peace train man" grants a fascinating interview explaining why he hasn't been granting interviews (!)

Perhaps the real reason was that Islam was too busy with his Muslim Aid 'charity' providing funds for the 'white Al Qaeda' in Bosnia, while moonlighting as treasurer of the Muslim Council of Britain .

Yusuf Islam interviewThe Scotsman (15.07.96) carries what it describes as "a rare interview" with Yusuf Islam, formerly the singer, Cat Stevens, and now chair of the Islamia Schools Trust. He said of life as a professional musician: "You've got to be competitive, you've got to be egoistic, you've got to be full of yourself...There's all sorts of things - drugs, drink, sex - I mean, the whole lot, you find, is somehow closely connected to the music business. That doesn't mean it's all bad, but to be able to exist or survive in that atmosphere with real, sincere intentions, is, I think, difficult. You've got to be extremely strong. I wasn't that strong, so I had to withdraw myself." Tom Morton, the interviewer, asked Yusuf Islam why he had not followed the path of Richard Thompson, formerly of Fairport Convention, who now writes and performs Sufi music, or Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, who has popularised devotional Islamic song in both West and East. Yusuf Islam responded: "Sincerity to God does not mean you have to stand on a stage and get everybody to applaud your religion. Applause is really for God and therefore there's an absence of putting yourself up as a kind of ‘Hey! I'm here! Don't you think I'm great! I'm religious!'" The interview also mentions The Last Prophet, a life of the Prophet Mohammed mainly spoken but with singing by Yusuf Islam and a children's choir, which came out on CD at the beginning of this year. [BMMS July 1996 Vol. IV, No. 7, p. 5/6]

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MIM: In 1996 Islam revealed his support for groups like Al Qaeda, who were opposed to the Saudi government when he blamed the cut in funding for his schools on his "moral support for those opposed to the Saudi government". This could include groups like the Committee for the Defense of Legitimate Rights which is run by Muhammed Ma'asri who was facing deportation from the UK. (see item below)

The Islamia school in Brent, north London, is facing a severe financial crisis due to an 85% cut in the donation usually received from Saudi Arabia and handed over in Ramadan (see BMMS for December 1995). Yusuf Islam, the school's founder and chair of the board of governors, believes that the cut, from £150,000 to £25,000, may be due to his moral support of those opposed to the Saudi government. He said: "We try to be unbiased but if I was locked up I hope someone would ask about me. It is only wishing for your brother what you wish for yourself" (Guardian Weekly 22.02.96). However, Mr Islam laid the responsibility for lack of funds on the educational policies of the government. He said: "...we have to go, begging bowl in hand, to affluent Muslim countries asking for help, even though the law of the land is on our side for state funding". Over 7000 Christian and 24 Jewish schools receive state funding, whereas none of the 45 Muslim schools does (Muslim News 16.02.96). [BMMS February 1996 Vol. IV, No. 2, p. 11]

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MIM: Update: As of 2004 Al Mas'ari still enjoys the protected status afforded Britain's terrorists even though it is possible that he, like Omar Bakri of Al Muhajiroun, no longer feels obligated to abide by the 'convenant of peace' as a result of the UK claiming to be cracking down on terrorism which he regards as attempts by "Zionist circles" to discredit him. In an example of Monty Pythonesque insanity terrorists who were arrested in their own countries for subversion and Islamic radicalism flocked to the UK and were given what is aptly termed 'asylum'.

The British gave Mas'ari asylum after he was arrested in Saudi Arabia for forming the CDLR - the Committee for the Defense of Legitimate Rights a group whose name claims that they advocate reform in Saudi Arabia and fools people into believing they are moderates. In reality the CDLR wants to overthrow the Saudi regime because they are not Islamic enough and replace the Saudi ruling family with a Taliban regime.

Here is an example of a human rights groups protecting Muslim terrorists on both fronts no doubt believing that their victims are not entitled to 'human rights' since they must have done something against Islam to provoke an attack!

This first excerpt from the Human Rights Watch report on Saudi Arabia decrying Mas'ris arrest. The second excerpt is from a human rights webpage decrying the UK decision to deport Maa'sri .The organisation wrote to arms corporations to protest the fact that they had urged the goverment to prosecute Maa'sri because of business ties Saudi Arabia.

In the moral relativist world of human rights organisations the terrorist is always right.

."... Two founders who were lawyers in private practice had their law offices closed down by royal order. The CDLR spokesman Dr. Muhammed al-Mas`ari, a physics professor at King Saud University, was arrested on May 15, after he defied an order not to talk to the foreign press about the committee. Fourteen other professors from King Saud and al-Imam universities were subsequently arrested and detained without trial. Lawyers supporting the new group had their offices closed and one, Sulaiman al-Rushudi, was also detained. Scores of the committee's other supporters, including about sixty university professors, were either dismissed from their official positions, banned from travel or both. http://www.hrw.org/reports/1994/WR94/Middle-09.htm

This is from Human Rights Watch Middle East decrying the UK government's decision to deport Al Mas'ari.

"...Human Rights Watch/Middle East took a strong stand criticizing the role of British corporations in pressuring the British government to deport exiled Saudi dissident Dr. Muhammed al-Mas'ari, a spokesman for the Committee for the Defense of Legitimate Rights (CDLR). Human Rights Watch/Middle East wrote the chairs of the arms corporations Vickers and GKN, both British corporations, citing their reported part in the decision to expel Dr. al-Mas'ari in violation of British law. Vickers is a leading manufacturer of arms and weaponry and a large supplier to the Saudi military. Human Rights Watch/Middle East protested the company's reducing al-Mas'ari's right to an asylum hearing to the status of an obstacle to British business and the company's business..". http://www.hrw.org/about/initiatives/corp.html

The Saudi dissident, Sheikh Abdallah al-Mas'ari, a leading member of the Committee for the Defence of Legitimate Rights, has been refused political asylum in Britain. The British government drew attention to the "first country rule" by which Mr al-Mas'ari should have applied for asylum in Yemen as this was the first country to which he went after leaving Saudi Arabia. An appeal is to be launched which may well take up to two years to be resolved ( Q News 02.12.94). [BMMS November 1994 Vol. II, No. 11, p. 11]

On 12 July the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) announced its decision not to prosecute Muhammad Al-Mas'ari (see BMMS for June 1996) for incitement to racial hatred (Birmingham Evening Mail, 12.07.96, Q-News, 12.07.96 and 19.07.96, Walsall Express & Star, 13.07.96, Jewish Chronicle, 19.07.96). Dr Al-Mas'ari commented: "It was a big fuss over nothing. The whole thing was instigated by Zionist circles to discredit me" (Q-News, 19.07.96). A week before the CPS decision was announced, Dr Al-Mas'ari held a press conference, accompanied by the historian and member of the Muslim Parliament, Dr Yaqub Zaki, and Omar Bakri Mohammad, leader of the Muhajiroun group, at which he denounced the referral to the CPS as being the tactics of the "Zionist lobby" (Q-News, 12.07.96). When the decision not to prosecute Dr Al-Mas'ari was announced, at least two MPs, Labour's Greville Jenner and Conservative David Hunt, chair of the Interparliamentary Council Against Anti-Semitism, requested a meeting with the Attorney General, Sir Nicholas Lyell (Jewish Chronicle, 19.07.96). The MP for Hendon South, John Marshall, said: "One is tempted to conclude that the CPS is determined to make a mockery of the law against incitement to racial hatred" (Jewish Chronicle, 19.07.96). Former Cabinet minister Lord Tebbit commented: "I express no surprise. It seems this man can say anything without risk of prosecution or expulsion from this country" (Walsall Express & Star, 13.07.96). [BMMS July 1996 Vol. IV, No. 7, p. 3]

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Muslim demands and complaints in prison are old news. In the spirit of the old school tradition the British appear to to be ' have bent over forwards' to show their dhimmitude which set a precedent for Abu Hamza. In 1996 the prison service public relations officier 'swore' that there would be no more mistakes made with Halal food in prison and the governor concluded "It's just easier to give everyone halal meat". He also announced that a mosque was being set up with the nations "first full time Muslim chaplain who was a former member of the Nation of Islam."

Q-News, reporting on Muslim prisoners' discontent with supposedly halal food at Strangeways Prison, Manchester (see BMMS for June 1996), interviewed the prison's public relations officer, Cathy Willard. Her explanation was that: "Something did happen a couple of months ago. Someone cooked some spam fritters in oil and then the oil was used to fry chips which was on the halal menu. We hold our hands up to that and it won't happen again.

Spam has been taken off the menu and the friers have been re-designated. It was a one-off." She denied that there was a hunger strike but admitted there could be a meals boycott: "We have a shop and occasionally inmates won't like the menu and will buy stuff from the shop. But it's not a hunger strike if they don't eat what we're providing." The Q-News article contrasts relations between staff and Muslim prisoners in Pentonville with Strangeways. Muslims form the largest faith group after Anglicans in Pentonville. Pentonville has announced plans to convert a disused workshop into a mosque. Once the building is completed, Imam Muraduddin, a preacher and former member of the Nation of Islam, is likely to be appointed as Britain's first full-time resident prison imam. Pentonville provides halal meat for all its prisoners. The governor, John Ship, said: "It's just easier to give everyone halal meat. We also get food from the Cultural Centre on festivals" (Q-News, 12.07.96). [BMMS July 1996 Vol. IV, No. 7, p. 3/4]

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Update 2005

MIM Makbool Javaid is a member of Al Muhajiroun and was appointed in 2003 by Minister Jack Straw to be part of a UK "Race Relations Forum'. The Board of Deputies of British Jews objected, (see below), and Jaived railed about Zionist plots as he did in the 1996 news item below, in which he blames the Mossad for being behind the "corrupt regimes in the Muslim world" The paranoic rantings and conspiracy theories spewed by .Javaid have resulted in his becoming a respected lawyer who specialises in highly lucrative 'human rights' and discrimination suits and is still involved with British government projects. http://www.militantislammonitor.org/article/id/62

Makbool Javaid, president of the Society of Muslim Lawyers, has an article in Q-News (12.07.96) in which he outlines the lack of any security for those who have fled repressive, so-called Islamic regimes, and come to Britain. He writes: "London, we are told, is the new centre for militant Islam and Malcolm Rifkind appeases his despotic client governments by threatening severe measures. In addition, asylum laws are being tightened in a Euro-wide move to curb the influx of militants fleeing persecution from tyrants. In turn, the dictatorships export their henchmen on seek and destroy missions as was the case recently with a Libyan shopkeeper in West London. The intelligence services swap information and co-ordinate surveillance activities. It is openly admitted that Islamic groups are targets for corrupt regimes from the Muslim world. There can be no greater danger than the activities of Mossad who are never far from the scene...Hysteria about Islamic fanatics is rampant - as evidenced in the recent arrests of Algerians at the behest of the French government." [BMMS July 1996 Vol. IV, No. 7, p. 8]

Q-News (26.07.96) reports on a case of alleged discrimination on religious grounds in employment in Northern Ireland which could be of significance for Muslims in mainland Britain. Mr Rab Nawaz is a museum curator at the Ulster Museum. He claims that in 1994, he was unfairly passed over for promotion as head curator of the museum's geology section. Mr Nawaz turned to the Northern Ireland Fair Employment Commission for help, and they will be hearing his case in October. The Fair Employment Commission was set up under the Fair Employment Act, primarily to fight discrimination of Catholics by Protestants, but it also covers people of other faiths. Makbool Javaid, of the Society of Muslim Lawyers, commented on the potential usefulness of similar legislation in mainland Britain: "The Fair Employment Act is a model which can easily be transferred to the rest of the United Kingdom. But there is neither the political will nor is there effective pressure from the community". Mr Nawaz is appealing through Q-News for funds to continue fighting his case, as he is not eligible for legal aid to do so. [BMMS July 1996 Vol. IV, No. 7, p. 9]\

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MIM: In 1998 Al Muhajiroun member Javaid sued for libel at being named a supporter of Usaama Bin Laden - claiming he thought that the terrorist group Al Muhajiroun was a 'social and educational organisation'

Makbool Javaid is taking libel action against several British newspapers which reported him as being a supporter of Usama bin Ladin and a member of "the London based fundamentalist group, al-Muhajiroun" (see BMMS for August 1998). The allegations started with a letter that was sent to the Home Secretary, Jack Straw, by the Jewish Board of Deputies, saying that these involvements were incompatible with the newly set up Race Relations Forum, to which Javaid was hoping to be appointed. Javaid has denied the allegations saying he was only involved with al-Muhajiroun as a legal observer, and would not have helped them if he had known of their support for terrorism: "I knew al-Muhajiroun as an organisation involved in a wide range of educational and social activities consistent with the promotion of Islam. I have never supported any form of violence, let alone terrorism" (The Times, 20.10.98). Speaking of the Board of Deputies he said: "It's rich of the Board, which is not even accepted as a representative of the Jewish Community, telling an elected government how to conduct its business and dictating which voices from other communities are acceptable" (Q-News, 01.10.98). Javaid said he felt "completely destroyed" by the experience, and is worried about the damage it has done to his reputation. Javaid's greatest triumph, the record award of £380,000 to Sam Yeboah for race discrimination against his former employer, was overshadowed by the allegations. He said: "I was thinking last week, look at that! It should be one of the greatest moments in my career but instead my career is threatened by these fantastic accusations" (The Times, 20.10.98). [BMMS October 1998 Vol. VI, No. 10, p. 9]

Special Branch officers have been called in to investigate anti-semitic posters, apparently produced by Muslims, which have appeared in Nottingham. Chief Inspector Peter MacLeod, of Carlton police, said: "This has been recorded as a racist incident. We take anything which shows an intolerance to any religious or racial group very seriously" (Nottingham Evening Post, 22.07.96). Mohammed Ishaq, a Muslim spokesperson in Nottingham, said: "The police are right to investigate this because it can cause real problems. Older Muslims are more aware of the truth, but it is easy for these groups to make the youth believe whatever they want by twisting the words of the Koran" (Nottingham Evening Post, 22.07.96). [BMMS July 1996 Vol. IV, No. 7, p.

According to a report in the Birmingham Express and Star (12.11.94), Ayatollah Jannati, one of the senior religious leaders in Iran, reiterated the fatwa against Salman Rushdie in an address at Tehran University on 11th November. He was reported to have said, "The Rushdie edict is like a bone in their throats. They try so hard, but the edict is irrevocable as long as that man lives". Earlier in the same week, Rushdie had criticised the governments of Europe, especially Germany and Britain, for continuing to trade with Iran instead of exerting economic pressure on it by a trade embargo. [BMMS November 1994 Vol. II, No. 11, p. 4]

There was tight security at a meeting in Bath on 2 July when Salman Rushdie read from his latest novel, The Moor's Last Sigh. Because of the fatwah concerning him (see BMMS for March, April and May 1996), Mr Rushdie has been unable to visit India to gather material for the book, which he admitted had been slightly irksome: "I'm very pleased with the way that book worked out. I don't want to waste energy being upset about what it might have been had things been different" (Bath Chronicle, 03.07.96). Mr Rushdie has also attended readings from his latest book in Oxford and Dillon's central London bookstore. Regarding the fatwah and its daily effect on his life and work, Mr Rushdie told the India Mail (09.07.96): "I more or less do it [writing] now like an office job...I am hopeful of the fatwah being lifted in view of the matter being pursued actively by the European Union. But I think it is important to show that the business of literature is not derailed by this kind of threat and that writers will write, booksellers will sell and readers will read, and that goes on." Q-News (19.07.96) says that: "Salman Rushdie is rumoured to be receiving up to £1.3 million from an American publishing house for the US rights to his new novel." The same article in Q-News quoted Mustaqim Bleher of the Islamic Party on the subject: "Rushdie is proven material. Why look for new ways to antagonise the Muslim community when you already have someone who excels? It also demonstrates that literature is not apolitical. Popular culture is another way people can demonise Muslims and keep up the myth of a bogey." [BMMS July 1996 Vol. IV, No. 7, p. 2/3]

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MIM: In 1996 Omar Bakri Mohammed who went on to found Al Muhajiroun, resigned from Hizb ut Tahrir because he found it "very heavy in administrative do's and don'ts". He announced that; "I have stepped down of my own accord because too much attention was being focused on personalities rather then the intellectual content of our message". Bakri's movement attracted working class Muslims and converts and he himself become a minor 'celebrity' in the UK.

On 15 January, Omar Bakri Mohammad, leader of Hizb-ut-Tahrir in the UK, resigned, saying that the organisation's new policy was "very heavy in terms of administrative do's and don't do's, which puts restrictions on da'wah [missionary activity]" (Muslim News 16.02.96). At the beginning of the month, Mr Mohammad denied that he had been ousted from his position as leader and at that stage stated that he would continue as an ordinary member. He said: "I have stepped down of my own accord because too much attention was being focused on personalities rather than the intellectual content of our message...We want a situation where the amir [leader] becomes a soldier and the soldier becomes amir" (Q-News 02.02.96).

It subsequently became apparent that he had left in order to work as part of another group, the Muhajiroun [the Emigrants, a name evoking the migration of the Holy Prophet and his followers from Mecca to Medina]. The Guardian (08.02.96) and Q-News (09.02.96) claimed that Mr Mohammad had formed the Muhajiroun out of an alliance of pre-existing organisations such as the Association of Muslim lawyers, the Gathering of Muslim Parents, and the Islamic International Front. Omar Bakri Mohammad's joining the Muhajiroun has coincided with its moving from being an umbrella organisation to becoming a party (Muslim News 16.02.96). The new Muhajiroun has as one of its aims the establishment of the Khilafa [caliphate] in Pakistan (Muslim News 16.02.96), and to this end intends to concentrate its efforts upon the Pakistani community and other British Muslim groups.

On 3 March, the Poale Zion in Brent, a Jewish organisation affiliated to Labour, will be holding a meeting to discuss the activities of Hizb-ut-Tahrir (Paddington Times 01.02.96). The Zionist group are concerned about Hizb-ut-Tahrir's activities amongst students.

Jewish groups are concerned that Hizb ut-Tahrir's change of tactics, which coincided with the departure of their former leader, Omar Bakri Mohammed could herald a wave of anti-Semitic activity on Britain's campuses. Jeremy Newark of the Union of Jewish Students (UJS) said: "I fear they will become nastier, targeting all non-believers. Why are they going underground unless they are going to do something they can't openly admit to?" (The Observer 18.02.96).

More universities, such as UCE in Birmingham and Leeds Metropolitan, have now banned the Hizb ut-Tahrir (see BMMS for October, December 1995 and January 1996). David Ward, national secretary of the UJS, believed the bans to be due to the campaigns his society, alongside other campus societies had waged (Jewish Telegraph 23.02.96). [BMMS February 1996 Vol. IV, No. 2, p. 6]

Three Muslim men from London, who had been arrested by police for putting fluorescent orange "Khilafah" stickers on telephone boxes and lamp posts in Bradford on 19th February, were each fined £120 with £90 costs by Bradford magistrates (Bradford Telegraph and Argus 05.12.94). They had been charged with depositing litter. Thousands of the stickers appeared in Bradford during the weekend in question (see BMMS for March and April 1994). [BMMS November 1994 Vol. II, No. 11, p. 10]

The decision by the management at the London School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) to ban members of Hizb ut-Tahrir from speaking at meetings of the school's "1924 Committee" (see BMMS for October 1994) led to an emergency meeting of the school's student union to debate a resolution which opposed "any attempt by college management to restrict what SOAS students can think, argue or organise" (Jewish Chronicle 11.11.94). The meeting was attended by an estimated 400 people and the resolution was passed together with another which undertook to take legal action against any group or individual who incited racial hatred or violence. Muslim students attended the meeting and some voted in favour of the resolution whilst making it clear that they supported freedom of speech rather than the ideas of Hizb ut-Tahrir (Q News 11.11.94).

After the meeting a student society called "Campaign Against Militarism" announced a meeting at which Omar Bakri Muhammad, the national leader of Hizb ut-Tahrir, was invited to speak. After this meeting it was indicated that this society will not be inviting members of Hizb ut-Tahrir to speak again. It was pointed out that the original ban on such speakers only referred to their speaking at meetings of the 1924 Committee. Further, a 1924 Committee meeting entitled "The rise of Islam on British campuses" was cancelled after a written warning from the Student Union to say that it would breach the school's code of practice and could lead to a ban on all future meetings of the society (Jewish Chronicle 02.12.94). Observers of student unrest over the decades will detect a recurrent theme of student idealism which is currently manifesting itself in Muslim circles in the guise of Hizb ut-Tahrir. [BMMS November 1994 Vol. II, No. 11, p. 4]

The Observer has published, for the second year, a list of 300 people with the most power to shape our lives. The members of the list were chosen to represent the worlds of business, politics, science and popular culture. The ‘Power Commission' marked each candidate out of 100 to asses a person's influence over four categories of business, politics, media and culture - the more influence on each category, the more power. Significant at number 246 is new entry Iqbal Sacranie, Secretary General of the Muslim Council of Britain, whose influence is considered greatest in the world of culture. His inclusion in the top 300 reflects the growing strength of the Muslim community in Britain. As there is no equivalent to the Chief Rabbi, the Archbishop of Canterbury or the Pope in the Muslim faith, leaders are effectively self-nominated and have to win the respect of the community they claim to represent. The Observer Magazine claims "Sacranie has done this by carefully positioning himself in opposition to extremist groups such as Hizb-ut-Tahrir (Party of God [sic] and Al-Muhajiroun (The Emigrants) which talk the language of world Islamic revolution." It also says that it is significant that Sacranie has first entered the "Power 300" list in the year that the Pope has fallen by 70 places and the Archbishop of Canterbury has dropped off altogether. Sacranie is also the chairman of the charity Muslim Aid and an advisor to the Home Office on Muslim issues. The article says: "The past 12 months have been extremely important for Britain's Muslims, and Sacranie has been a vocal and articulate advocate during difficult times for the benefit of the wider community" (The Observer Magazine, 24.10.99). [BMMS October 1999 Vol. VII, No. 10, p. 2]

The Islamic Society of Britain was to hold its annual Islamic Awareness Seminar on October 24. Doncaster Central MP Rosie Winterton and Lord Nazir Ahmed were to be among the guests. The aim of the event was to remove misconceptions about Islam and to promote racial harmony (Doncaster Free Press, 14.10.99). The East London Mosque in Whitechapel opened its doors to the general public during the 16-21 October. One of the aims of the event was to bring people of different faiths together. Guests at the launch included MP Oona King and Bishop of Stepney John Sentamu who said his "dream of speaking at the East London Mosque had finally come true." Exhibitions on Islam and science, mosques around the world and women in Islam were displayed during the week, and other events included a book fair, guided tours and a children's corner (East End Life, 18.10.99 and 25.10.99). In Peterborough, the UK Islamic Mission organised a seven day programme of demonstrations and discussions to create a better understanding of the faith in the city. Peterborough City Council's external liaison officer, Ansar Ali, helped organise the week's events and said he believed it would give important guidance to those ignorant of the Muslim way of life. He said: "Peterborough has a very large Muslim community, about 11,000, and four mosques for praying which are full to the hilt every Friday. This week has been designed and encouraged to make people aware about Islam and will help create a better understanding and harmony between Muslims and non-Muslims." The week began with a seminar at the Gladstone Community Centre and a host of invited speakers from all over the country talked about their experiences and beliefs, including former a Catholic, Erica Timoney, who became a Muslim in 1981 after picking up the Qur'an whilst living in Egypt (Peterborough Herald & Post, 21.10.99). [BMMS October 1999 Vol. VII, No. 10, p. 5/6]

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MIM: Al Muhajiroun member and Bin Laden supporter Makbool Javaid now enjoys a lucrative career as an employment 'equality' lawyer, which brings to mind his 'brother in arms' Kamran Bokhari, who was also a featured speaker at a 1996 Al Muhajiroun rally . Bokhari is now a 'strategic analyst' by Stratfor Inc. . A company run by George Friedman which has been described as a '. quasi CIA' . Bokhari's terrorist associations are the source of good natured humor at Stratfor,where he is affectionately referred to as our "in house Jihadi".

Makbool is head of the Equality and Diversity group, which is part of the UK Human Resources group. He was formerly head of Litigation Services at the Commission for Racial Equality. Makbool has been involved in several high profile cases including: Burton and Rhule v De Vere Hotels Ltd (1996); Jones v Tower Boot Co Limited (1997); Harrods Limited v Remick and others (1997); Bossa v Nordstress Limited (1998); D'Souza v London Borough of Lambeth; Chan v London Borough of Hackney. He has particular expertise in the financial services sector and in pan-European employment discrimination issues. Makbool also acts on behalf of a number of significant public sector bodies. In addition to defending complex and sensitive cases he also provides in-house training and coaching to senior Managers/Directors of the large private and public corporations. He advises on general employment law, and the avoidance and management of discrimination in all non-employment areas. Makbool also advises on human rights issues. He speaks and conducts training on employment issues, has been widely published and regularly contributes to legal and personnel journals. Makbool is a member of the CBI Equality Forum, Law Society Employment Committee and a former adviser to the Government on race relations issues